Fiscal Origins of the French Revolution

“Fiscal Origins of the French Revolution: financial crises, public opinion and institutional change in Early Modern Europe, 1688-1789”

Professor Joel Felix; Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)

Professor Felix said: “Fiscal history has never been more relevant than today, and the public awareness raised by the crash of 2007/08 provides the perfect platform to make the subject better known to the general public and to inform current political and financial debates. My research will assess the ways in which fiscal issues put the very fabric of societies under stress, causing crises and fostering change. The core of my project is to explain why and how the fiscal problems of the Bourbon monarchy paved the way to the French Revolution.”

As part of the project, Professor Felix will organise a series of public lectures and two international conferences on historical finance to see how the past can inform today’s issues. He will also write a comprehensive monograph on the fiscal origins of the French Revolution which is under contract with UOP.

The ESRC is the UK’s largest organisation for funding research on economic and social issues. It supports independent, high quality research which has an impact on business, the public sector and the third sector.